Kit question - cold feet on the bike

Since I got my turbo last year I don't go out on the bike in the crappy horrible weather, but I've got a little 24 mile jolly on 7 October with a certain Victoria Pendleton so need some kit help. OK, so it's not just me and VP, but she'll be there and hopefully we'll get to meet her!

I get really cold feet on the bike and as this ride is up in Cheshire so will probably be wet and cold (and I'm used to nice, dry Norfolk) I am thinking I need to get some of those waterproof overshoes to help keep my feet dry and warm. Well, dry at least. I'm not likely to be using them lots so don't really want to pay lots of money, but am a little concerned that if I just get the cheapest they'll be a bit rubbish. Can anyone help with a suggestion?

Also any suggestions to keep my feet from being blocks of ice would be welcome too as the friend I'm doing this ride with doesn't even own a bike, you can hire them on the day, so it's possibly going to take a long time for us to get round the course.

The other thing I need is some covers for the cleats on my bike shoes, as it's likely we'll be getting off and walking up hills, plus they'll be wondering around before we start. Do I need to get the make that my shoes are or are they sort of interchangeable?

I did notice they had socks on, but not over shoes, will check out their site.

I do try and make sure I'm warm before I go out, but I'm a bit concerned that there will be a lot of waiting about while they organise all the different waves of ladies at this event and I'll get cold again. Am going to go in normal shoes and leave putting my bike ones on as late as possible but for some reason they just get cold really quickly. Have a similar problem with my hands, but they seem to be ok with silk glove liners and leather gloves, plus you can move your hands about a bit which you can't do with your feet. Or maybe I'm just an Eastern Jessie!

Have just check out the Aldi site and if no-one says they are rubbish will go and get some on Thursday The cycle stuff doesn't usually disappear too quickly from my local store, so should be ok for still getting some after work.

What cleats have you got ? You can get covers for some of them - but if its a recessed or MTB cleat you dont need to. I dont think I'd bother with covers really - if you're in your bike shoes - you'll be with your bike - so aside from registering in a church hall or whatever - you really wont be walking far. Thats what the bike is for.

If its a gentle 24 miles I doubt they'll have chosen hills so steep that you cant ride up them in.

Oh and dont cramp your shoes with thick socks. You need the blood to circulate so thinner socks would be better if thick ones mean you cant wiggle your toes. Same thing with the shoe - dont tighten them up massively.

Erm not sure what sort of cleats I have, just normal ones for a road bike, not sure of the make. They're not recessed though and it's been recommended before that I get covers for them so they don't wear out so quickly when I'm walking on them.

It's this Cyletta ladies only event, so I fear there may well be a lot of milling about at the start as I think there will be a good few entrants and they may restrict riding about. And I hope it's fairly gentle as I don't have any hills to practice on near me! *whispers* not that I've even really been on the bike since January because of injury.

So a couple of pairs of thinner socks would be best? I have a pair of angora socks and I thought I might try those as I thought they may trap the warm air in, but they may be a bit thick?

I've got covers for my look cleats and appear to have done a job this year but they themsevles have weared out. (irony?) So not sure if worth getting or not at the moment. You can get them from decathalon and other places but best bet to start is wiggle.

I don't like sealskinz socks so I wouldn't bother - but others obviously disagree.

If you want warm feet on the cheap get an old pair of socks, warmish ones if you have them, pull them over your shoes, then make a small cut out and pull the hole round your cleat so it doesn't foul your pedals. Then get some cheap neoprene overshoes and put them over the top - or just get 2 pairs of cheap neoprene overshoes and put one pair over the other. Or there are some windproof ones here - http://www.wiggle.co.uk/dhb-windproof-overshoe/ maybe put them over a pair of woolen socks over your shoes - that'll be fine.

I don't like sealskinz either, my feet freeze in them and I will only wear them on a particularly wet ride. I suffer terribly from cold feet and hands. I wear a thin pair of socks and a pair of woolie boolie socks and find this works reasonably well. I have a pair of the Endura overshoes and find them very good but it depends on how often you are going to use them again. Most of the bike stuff from Aldi and Lidl is quite good so probably worth getting those overshoes.

They are plastic cleats and the reason I thought I needed covers is that someone said they wear out really easily if you walk on them? I could take a picture of them tonight if that helps - they are shimano pedals and DHB shoes.

So the best thing will be a couple of pairs of thin socks, then my shoes, then some old thick ones with a hole cut out for the cleat and then the wind proof overshoes which they currently have in Aldi

Thanks everyone, hopefully this will keep my toes toasty warm and stop me becoming a right grumpy bugger on the ride!

Look KEOs defintely need covers as they wear out very quickly walking in them. are yours standard Looks Cougie?? I think they are more robust.

Shimano cleats are vety hard wearing - my missus has them and I've gone through way many more pairs of Keos than she has Shims. but then I do put more pressure through which may be a contributing factor??

I've not found the Keos too bad FB - I get through maybe a set every 5k miles - I suppose it's all relative - I have only ever used Keos and the old Looks so can't really compare them to Shimano/Time etc.

5k miles??? I think my last pair lasted about 2K. and these were the Keo 2 Max cleats which have a rubber wear plate on the base. the bloody wear plates wore off!!!

I've toyed with the idea of changing pedals to something other than Keo but the cost of doing that for 3 bikes kind of puts me off vs the cost of buying new cleats which after all are only around £10-15 a pair. I must get hold of some of the Exustar KEO equivalent cleats and see if they last longer than the Look ones

I got dome covers off ebay. Decathlon sometimes have them. they are more popular on the continent and I like them for coffee shop mincing. They are not essential. You can get cleats with some rubber and these are a lot quieter.